Huang Qi, owner and webmaster of the Internet site www.tianwang.com, has been imprisoned since June 2000 and his trial ended in August 2001.
Huang was arrested on June 3 2000 – the day before the 11th anniversary of the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre – and was charged under articles 103 and 105 of the criminal code. He was accused of posting on his website articles about the massacre written by dissidents living abroad. He had set up the site to put out news about people who had disappeared in China. Huang was ultimately tried for "subversion" in August 2001. He had to wait until May 9 2003 to find out he had been sentenced to five years in prison.
Huang Qi was jailed in July 2000 at Chengdu's detention centre no.1. Former cellmates said he was beaten regularly and denied medicine he needed.
Huang and his wife, Zeng Li, set up and registered their website, www.6-4tianwang.com, in June 1998. For a fee, people could post information there about missing friends or family members, including those abducted in rural areas and sold into marriage. Huang managed the site, helped to decide on its content, and actively investigated cases, ultimately aiding in the rescue of several trafficked girls. The site won praise from many official Chinese media outlets – China Youth Daily called it one of the most significant Internet events in 1999 – and Chinese journalists visited Huang to learn how to "report the pain of the people."
Reporters Without Borders on 22 June 2004 awarded its 2004 Cyberfreedom Prize to Huang Qi.
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Last updated: 05-13-2005 07:56:04
